Allyson is currently a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Calgary studying microbial diversity and carbon cycling in extreme environments. She has been a member of the PLRP since 2005 and will be the acting PI this summer while Darlene Lim is on leave. Allyson completed her PhD at McMaster University in isotope geochemistry under the guidance of Greg Slater where her research focused on applying isotopic analytical techniques to investigate the role of biology in carbonate precipitation and the identification of associated microbial isotope biosignatures. Her research interests continue to focus on microbes in extreme environments, microbial carbon cycling, influences on carbonate precipitation and the potential for the formation of isotopic biosignatures that may be preserved in the geologic record.